Stars Get Behind A Big Problem

Wed, 12 Mar 2008 11:10:29 -0000

Lolita is a 42-year-old living in Miami. Originally from Puget Sound near Washington, Lolita was forcibly taken from her home in 1970 – when she was only six years old – and forced to perform for people who would pay money to watch her. Thirty-seven years later, Lolita is still living in cramped conditions.

Lolita is 22 feet long and weighs 7,500 pounds. She loves being wet, but lives in a tank only 80 feet wide and 20 feet deep at the Miami Seaquarium… a far cry from the wide-open spaces of her home.

Lolita is an Orca – also known as a killer whale – and the campaign to send her home has just hit an all time high, with a long list of celebrity supporters adding their names to a proposal to retire the aging mammal to her home.

The Orca Network is behind the campaign, with organization co-founder and president Howard Garrett recently announcing the support of actors Johnny Depp and Harrison Ford and rap stars 50 Cent and Snoop Dogg.

“Momentum is building,” said Garrett. “A publicity campaign is in the works being directed by people in Hollywood.”

The Orca Network is also currently organizing a benefit concert to raise money for the campaign, perhaps featuring other celebrity supporters such as Janet Jackson, Jermaine Jackson, and Placido Domingo.

“Lolita is a very special orca,” said Garrett. “Her survival is beyond all expectations. Of the 45 of Lolita’s extended family, the Southern Resident orcas, captured and delivered to parks around the world between 1965 and 1975, all the others were dead by 1987. She is known to be courageous, yet so very gentle. She has endured 37 years of confinement while performing two shows per day, without the company of any other orca since 1980. She deserves a chance to retire to her home waters and visit with her family once again.“

Other celebrities to add their names in support of the “Free Lolita” campaign include Robert Downey Jr, Bob Barker, Hayden Panettiere, Billy Zane, and Jean Claude Van Damme.

People wishing to support the campaign or learn more can visit the Orca Network website.

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